High Waves Thought to be Primary Cause of Indonesian Ferry Disaster

Indonesian investigators are now blaming the sinking of an Indonesian ferry on high waves washing into the vehicle deck of the vessel. The ferry, which sank almost two weeks ago with more than 600 persons on board, likely capsized as high waves flooded its decks. At least 400 people are either dead or missing with another 245 rescued by search and rescue teams and other vessels.

This week, a passing cargo ship picked up the latest survivors, 14 people on a life raft, all of whom were suffering from exposure. Another passenger in the same raft died hours after the group was rescued. The latest rescue gave renewed hope to relatives of those still missing and thought to be dead.

Investigators are also saying that, contrary to earlier fears, the ferry was not overloaded at the time of the capsizing. The captain of the ill-fated ferry, the M/V “Senopati Nusantara,” is reportedly being questioned by authorities at an undisclosed location. According to eyewitness accounts, high waves entered the car deck over the door and then could not run off quickly enough, making the vessel heavy and unstable. In a final radio transmission to port authorities, the vessel’s Master was reported to have said that the ship was badly damaged and capsizing.

The ferry went down in the Java Sea, off Semarang, Central Java. Search and rescue operations, led by eight Indonesian navy frigates, two Nomad aircrafts and a helicopter combed the area for survivors. Search and rescue efforts were initially hampered by heavy sea and wind conditions.

Indonesia depends heavily on the use of ferries and other marine transport to move people and cargo between the thousands of islands which make up its landmass. Chronic overcrowding on some of these vessels makes accurate reporting on cargoes and numbers of passengers almost impossible.

The sinking of the 1992-built “Senopati Nusantara” comes in the wake of as many as six other maritime accidents in different parts of this sprawling archipelago. In other parts of the world, similar incidents involving so-called "RO-RO" ferries have spurred proposed design changes in the way that watertight doors and ramps that allow vehicle access to these types of ships. In Indonesian waters, overcrowding and poorly enforced safety standards often translate into frequent maritime accidents and loss of life and cargo.